Theme: Be Armed by the Power of God
6: 10-11 It might seem strange that Paul uses the metaphor of armor for being a Christian in life. But you need to remember that during the first century the Roman army was pretty much occupying the entire Mediterranean and beyond. The system was a conglomeration of conquered countries ruled by the Romans. Even parts of what we now consider to be Italy were subjugated states. The way the Romans enforced their policies and law was through the use of force by the Roman Army so a Roman in full armor was a common site. He had to wear his armor when he was on duty for protection against unruly citizens who might want to harm him.
Paul takes this idea and applies it to Christians. Christianity was a very new minority religion. When a person was a Christian they would probably encounter people in the world who would want to dissuade people from following Christ. Armor is considered to be at once a symbol of violence and imposition but also a symbol of protection. In this case Paul is saying that we are protected by God, but that the armor is also a way of showing people what Christ is to them. It is a mental evangelism tool.
But Paul also saw Christians in a war – not with the Romans but with the forces of darkness in the world, specifically the devil. Paul wanted Christians to understand that they would have to battle those forces every day. These are made up not only the people who would oppose Christianity, but also the people who wanted there to be injustice in the world. Paul therefore elevates Christianity from a religion that is just for Christians to a religion that must fight for justice beyond the Christian community – not matter where it happens.
6:12 The forces of darkness are listed here. How might we define these forces today?
Enemies of blood and flesh
(Things that can hurt you physically)
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Viruses; Disease
Sex trafficking; pedophiles
Addictive substances; alcohol, drugs, cigarettes
Pirates; people who exploit you.
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Rulers
(People with government power)
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Corrupt rulers
Dictators & Tyrants: Hitler, North Korea, Russia
Power structures that don’t allow people power.
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Authorities
(People who have position: teachers, ministers, advisors)
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Corrupt Police
Embezzlers: Bernie Madoff; unethical stock brokers/bankers
Corrupt Government Officials
Corrupt Judges
Pharisees: Someone who sticks to the RULE of law for their own benefit without thinking of circumstances or justice
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Cosmic Powers
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Spiritual forces of evil *
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Devil
White Nationalism: KKK
Compliancy: It doesn’t involve/touch me
Prejudice/Injustice
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* There was a belief that spiritual warfare on earth was also taking place in heaven. Back then heaven wasn’t a calm place with angels but a country that was at war with the forces of darkness. This wasn’t restricted to Christians – the Greeks also had this idea.
6: 13-17 A description of the armor of God. Note that Paul says to take up the “whole armor.” This is because he believed that you had to make your whole life reflect Christ. You couldn’t do it piece by piece. I am sure that Paul had people in his churches who were “part Christian,” who didn’t want to take on all the aspects of Christianity.
* The armor also helps us to deal with the bad stuff in the outside world. Often we are overwhelmed by the stress that the difficulties and the injustice that the world brings to us. The armor is a shield to keep us from internalizing all the craziness.
Piece of Armor
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What does this item mean to you? Why is it important?
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Belt of Truth
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Live by being truthful. Truth gives us confidence that we are acting with sincerity. People trust us. When people instruct us truthfully, we know we’re doing it right. Truth leads to justice – lying leads to corruption
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Breastplate of Righteousness
(Living right with God)
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Treating all people as equal. Not lying. Following commandments to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Keeping a connection with God fortifies our faith. Acting in Charity.
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Shoes for your feet
(Mission, Evangelism)
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Going out into the world with our faith. Telling others about God. Community service. Sharing with friends. What kind of shoes do you imagine wearing when you do God’s work?
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Shield of Faith
(How does our faith in Christ shield us?)
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We believe that God will give us power and strength to see us through the bad stuff. Also, the bad stuff will end and God will get us to a better place.
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Helmet of Salvation
(The helmet is worn on the head – so this is a protections from the mental struggle of not being worthy)
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We know Jesus is living in our hearts. We know we have a Holy Spirit connection. We believe in ourselves because God believes in us. When we make a mistake (sin) we can forgive ourselves because Jesus has told us that we are forgiven – so we find relief from sin and we can move on and correct the mistake.
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Sword of the Spirit
(Word of God)
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The sword cuts through things – it is also a weapon that can kill. The Sword as the Word of God is worn on the Belt of Truth, so the word of God is cutting through lies and speaking truth to power. The truth cuts through the dark forces in the world to bring about justice for everyone in the world.
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6:18 -20 The importance of prayer: Paul asks that people be in prayer. He asks for prayers for himself and the saints – church leaders. Also, we should pray for each other. It is interesting to note that he is calling himself “an ambassador in chains.” This is why scholars think that was written from prison. Also, even if a Christian can do nothing else they can always pray.
* When you can’t think of anything that you can do you can pray – which will calm you down so that you can think of something to do.
* A quote from Teresa’s mother Edith: Just remember; Thank God for the little blessings and the big blessings will come.
6:21-22 Personal connection: Letters usually were brought to the churches by people who were visiting. In this case Tychicus is bringing the letter to the church.
Q. What are the ways that we can connect and find out about each other in Christ.
* Letters, Post cards, Greeting cards, Telephone
* Emails, Zoom, Facebook, Facetime
* The stress we are experiencing now is that we have lost a lot of face-to-face time and we are all feeling lonely.
6:23-24 Final Benediction: Paul blesses the whole community in the name of Jesus.
